In the prior art there are a number of cutting mechanisms that are utilized in the culinary arts to aid in the preparation of comestible products. These devices are utilized to cut, shred, peel or otherwise prepare fruit and vegetables for serving or for cooking. Often this preparation process includes peeling, at a minimum, as many fruit and vegetables must be prepared for serving or cooking by removing or cutting the outer peeling or skin therefrom.
Over the years, it has been the predominate practice to peel fruit and vegetables by holding them by hand and using a hand held peeling device to remove the outer skin of the fruit or vegetable. Such techniques and devices are not only slow and tedious to use but also require a great deal of physical effort to be exerted when preparing such foods. In addition, hand held slicing, peeling and cutting implements are inherently dangerous in that a user must hold the vegetable or fruit, which may be wet and/or slippery, while wielding a sharp blade in close proximity to their hand in order to remove the peel or skin from what is usually an irregular surface of the food product. In addition, in such applications, the user's hands often get dirty from holding the vegetable while in the process of peeling.
In an attempt to make the preparation of foods such as fruits and vegetables less labor intensive and safer, various machines have been designed for use in the kitchen for use in removing the peelings from fruits and vegetables such as countertop mounted devices that include rotors and numerous cutting elements that support and turn a fruit or vegetable against a knife blade for the purpose of removing the peel. The difficulty is that such devices are often large and cumbersome and require counter and storage space. Furthermore, while they have a gimmicky appeal, they are inefficient and generally require more effort for set-up and cleaning than the device produces in the time saved in peeling the food product.
The prior art also shows several fork type devices some with ejectors. By way of example reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 2,420,710 to Livingston; U.S. Pat. No. 2,881,816 to Batt; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,495,794 to Ulysse. These devices also tend to be quite cumbersome and difficult to use. Moreover, these prior art devices do not adequately hold the piece of fruit or vegetable. Furthermore, these existing devices do not provide a ready means for disengaging the piece of fruit or vegetable from the device, i.e., after peeling, slicing or cutting.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved device for holding an edible food product such as a vegetable or fruit and in readiness for the preparation thereof.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved device for holding and preparing a food product in which the fruit or vegetable is held in a safe manner. The device of the present invention is in particular constructed and arranged so that any cutting implement used with the device of the present invention is not to be used adjacent or close to the hand of the user.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved device for holding and preparing a food product, particularly fruit or vegetables and in which the edible product is retained easily, effectively and affirmatively so that the peeling, cutting or slicing can be readily performed.